Pentarus

Starship modifications: Multiple instances of same attachment

This is a very old and unpublished post discussing multiple instances of identical attachments. I present it here updated and somewhat revised. It is fun to read this years later and see that I still have the same basic approach.

One obvious example of this is the weapon attachment, multiple instance of identical or different weapons may be attached as turrets or in fixed positions. While some might take issue with the fact that linked weapons do not take up more CHPs than a single weapon, bear in mind that it is one attack roll, and after Linked 3 it makes little sense to add more weapons, as 6 advantages itself is a pretty rare occurrence.

Now, how about the rest of the attachments?

I would argue that multiple instances of identical non-weapon attachments should be fine, if this is what the players really want. Hard points on starships are few, so if players really want to spend them like that, I’d be ok with it.

There are some considerations to take into account.

Some attachments may not at all make sense to take twice, like Nightshadow Coating from Fly Casual. Adding a second reinforced shield generator on the other hand can make sense. It’s ultimately up to the GM, but I’d err on the side of generosity, just keep in mind the below suggestions.

Adding a second instance of an attachment should increase cost and/or difficulty of installation (if you make your players roll for that). It also makes sense to have the difficulty of modification options start at an increased or upgraded difficulty.